


Thanks

by EclecticIsMyMiddleName



Category: Star Wars Prequel Trilogy, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Allusions to CSA, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Father-Son Relationship, Gen, Other, Prison, Surrogate family, because a child in an adult prison is a very bad idea, thank god Bossk is there to keep young Boba safe
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-30
Updated: 2018-12-30
Packaged: 2019-09-30 11:06:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,728
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17222849
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EclecticIsMyMiddleName/pseuds/EclecticIsMyMiddleName
Summary: Boba and his trandoshan ally, Bossk, find themselves in prison after attempting to assassinate Jedi Mace Windu.Set shortly after the episode, "Lethal Trackdown".





	Thanks

**Author's Note:**

> Be warned, there are references to child sexual abuse (csa) within this fic. If that triggers you, or makes you uncomfortable, please turn back. There is NO actual child sexual abuse occurring. It's only referenced because Boba is a child placed in an adult prison, and prison rape is a thing. If these warning don't apply to you, please enjoy my fic!

"Have fun in confinement," the trooper said, his voice monotone beneath his helmet. Unceremoniously, he shoved the trandoshan and the human boy inside their cell. With a push of a button, he brought back the energy shield that served as the door.  
  
As soon as the guard zoomed away on a floating panel, Boba threw his hands in the air with a frustrated growl. "Great! Just great! All that work for nothing!"  
  
In his angry fit, he kicked the lower bunk bed, then exclaimed in pain. With a defeated sigh, he plopped onto the hard bed. His foot was already starting to ache as he slumped over, looking down at his lap to hide his face. Tears threatened to fall, brought on by the pain in his foot and frustration at his target escaping him again.  
  
Bossk crossed his arms, standing tall enough that his shoulder blades touched the top bunk when he leaned back. His orange eyes locked onto Boba, watching the boy get to his feet. Though limping a bit, Boba started pacing, too frustrated to stay still.  
  
“I just - _ugh!_ We almost had Mace Windu!" the boy continued, fuming as he raked his hands through his hair. “I’m never gonna get that bastard, am I?!”  
  
Pity rose in the trandoshan’s chest, the emotion clenching tightly in a way he recognized as paternal. The feeling had been occurring almost daily, ever since he agreed to help Boba take revenge for his father’s death. It only intensified when the boy sat down again, sulking and frowning.  
  
Something about the human child struck a chord in Bossk; perhaps the parental instincts he suppressed weren’t as locked away as he thought?  
  
Hastily shoving the feeling down, Bossk shook his head.  
  
Bounty hunting was too dangerous to be a family business. Too many liabilities. Too many attachments. It was no use trying to start a family in a world where anyone could betray you. The best you could hope for was a handful of loyal drinking buddies with decent aim with a blaster.  
  
Hissing quietly, he finally spoke, having not said a word since their arrest. "Patience, Boba. We'll have another chance."  
  
"You don't know that!" Boba snapped, glaring at the trandoshan a moment before slouching. His frustration subsided as he remembered who he was shouting at. "Sorry, Bossk. I-I'm sure you're right."  
  
Bossk dipped his head to acknowledge Boba's apology.  
  
Despite claiming to be a tough bounty hunter like his father, Boba _really was_ just a kid. And right now, he was scared and frustrated. But here - in this prison filled with the worst scum of the galaxies - he was also _vulnerable._ And _that_ was something Bossk was _not_ going to allow.  
  
"We'll find a way out of here, and find another way to get you your revenge," He promised, standing at his full height. Straightening his spine, he hardened his expression and looked down at the boy. He hissed again, his eyes narrowing as he squared his shoulders. "Until then, you are _not_ to leave my line of sight!"  
  
"What?!" Boba exclaimed, jumping to his feet, his face scrunched up indignantly. "I'm not a helpless kid! I'm a bounty hunter like my father!"  
  
Bossk grit his teeth, hunching over slightly to look the kid in the eye. "You're no bounty hunter yet, _kid!"_  
  
"Well, I _will_ be!" Boba argued, pointing an accusing finger up at him. "And you can't-!"  
  
Bossk extended his arm, poking Boba in the chest with one claw. Despite the trandoshan holding back from using his full strength, the simple action still knocked the wind from the boy’s lungs.  
  
"I _can_ because I'm bigger than you!” Bossk retorted, snarling as he added, “Don't you get it? You're still a kid, and no kid-" The tip of his claw poked Boba in the chest again. "-especially a _human_ kid is gonna be strong enough to be on his own at your age."  
  
Boba glared up at him, one hand covering the spot where Bossk’s claw poked him. Little tears popped up in the corners of his eyes, and he blinked them away before they could fall. His voice cracked as he replied, "So now I'm _weak?!"_  
  
The shining droplets in the boy’s eyes caught Bossk’s attention, and the trandoshan backed off. With a huff, he shook his head. "Didn't say that."  
  
"Then what _are_ you saying?" Boba demanded, wiping away the tears in one eye with the back of his hand. His other eye remained focused on the trandoshan. “If I’m not ‘weak’, then what are talking about?”  
  
"I'm _saying_ that you need to look around!” Bossk replied, gesturing to their cell. For now, only the two of them occupied it, but he had no doubt more prisoners would arrive later. “We’re in a prison! Not exactly a ‘friendly’ place.” The ‘s’ sound dragged into a soft hiss as his arm fell to his side. “There are those in here that would take advantage of your age to get what they want. Do you understand what I mean?”  
  
Boba’s eyes widened, genuine fear flashing across his features before he wrangled his emotions back down. Dipping his head, he couldn’t look Bossk in the eye as he stubbornly replied, “I wouldn’t let that happen to me.”  
  
“I’ve heard _that_ before,” Bossk replied, his eyes narrowing again. Balling his fists, his claws dug into his palms as the faces of other people cropped up in his mind. Some of them had been friends, others strangers. All had insisted they were tough enough to fend for themselves. "From others like you. Poor souls with no family and no one to look out for them.”  
  
“...What happened to them?” Boba asked, his voice sounding smaller than he anticipated.  
  
The trandoshan’s usual stoic expression wavered. Tiredness seeped into Bossk’s voice as he answered, “Most of them have perished. Others, I’ve never seen again.”  
  
The words hit Boba hard enough to knock the wind from his lungs again. Harsh reality set in, weighing him down until he felt too heavy to stand. He fell back, sitting and slumping onto the bunk behind him like a puppet whose strings have been cut. Cold loneliness crept engulfed him, like frost over defenseless flora. It left behind a consuming emptiness.  
  
Boba hated the way vulnerability swirled in his gut, striking his weak points and making him feel exposed. Before, his father had always been there when he felt like this. Jango’s confidence always dispelled the uneasy feeling inside him.  
  
But Jango wasn’t here anymore, and the closest Boba had to a caretaker was Bossk. The trandoshan wasn’t exactly “affectionate”, but he had never struck him. Despite his standoffish demeanor, he seemed to care about his well being. Though how _much,_ Boba wasn’t sure.  
  
“I don’t want to see you end up like them,” Bossk said, breaking the boy from his thoughts. “You aren’t weak, but need someone to protect you until you're old enough to fend for yourself."  
  
"And that someone would be you?" Boba asked, unable to find the strength in him to get mad. He finally understood that Bossk wasn’t trying to _insult_ him, but be _honest_ with him. “You’d really look out for me?”  
  
Bossk nodded, leaning back against the top bunk. His reptilian features twisted into a smirk. “You can’t get your revenge if you don’t make it out of here, can you?”  
  
Boba chuckled, a mirthless sound. “You’re right.” A nagging in the back of his mind came to the forefront. Jango was a feared but respected bounty hunter. Being his son, he wasn't just _any_ kid, was he? "Wouldn't I be safer, though, being Jango's son?"  
  
Shaking his head, Bossk sighed. "Doubt anyone would be scared to touch you, now that your father's dead." Bossk caught Boba's wince out of the corner of his eye, so he quickly amended, “But your father’s legacy could prove useful, so it isn’t all bad.”  
  
“‘Useful’?” Boba asked, glancing up at him. “You mean it could get me allies?”  
  
“Yes,” Bossk replied, nodding as the ‘s’ turned into a quiet hiss. “Jango took down a lot of scum, like slavers and spice lords. Victims were grateful to free. The gratitude of their friends, families, and allies can be useful in a place like this.”  
  
“But I can’t count on allies in here, can I?” Boba guessed, turning his gaze to the floor and clasping his hands in his lap. “It’d be stupid to think people I don’t even know would risk themselves to protect me just because of my father.”  
  
“Smart thinking, kid,” Bossk replied, reaching down to ruffle Boba’s hair. The boy made a disgruntled noise and swatted his hand away. “If a bit cynical.”  
  
“So...you’re the only one I can count on in here?” Boba surmised, bringing his eyes back up to meet Bossk’s. “My father’s legacy won’t save me?”  
  
"No, I don’t think you should count on it,” Bossk answered, a hiss rattling in the back of his throat. “Not everyone affected by Jango’s work was _happy._ If anything, it'd give the others in here _more_ incentive to-"  
  
The words halted on his tongue, the wide-eyed look returning to Boba’s face reminding him that Boba was still a _kid._ Freaking him out would only cause more damage, or even paranoia. Boba had already seen enough terrible things to last a lifetime. Paranoia-induced nightmares was the last thing he needed.  
  
“Well, I’m sure you can imagine,” Bossk finished, crossing his arms. “You don’t need me adding to it.”  
  
"...I-I wouldn't let that happen," Boba said, more to himself than Bossk. Getting to his feet, he fixed a tough expression on his face and squared his shoulders. “Yeah! It doesn’t matter who my father is, because no one’s gonna get the better of me! I won’t go down without a fight!”  
  
Bossk’s temper snapped, flaring as the boy’s bravado made a recovery. Boba flinched when the trandoshan snarled, but recovered as quickly as he could.  
  
"You don't _get it,_ do you?!" Bossk hissed, sending a searing glare down at Boba. He poked him in the chest again, a little harder than last time. The air left the boy’s lungs in a huff. "No amount of false bravery will protect you! You can act as tough as you want, but all it takes is one guy who's bigger than you to get an idea! Then he’ll snatch you before you can cry out for the guards!"  
  
Boba opened his mouth to object. "But-!"  
  
_"No!"_ Bossk growled, flashing his sharp teeth. Though it wasn’t his intention to frighten the boy, he still made Boba flinch. "You're _not_ going to leave my line of sight whether you like it or not! You go out there without anyone watching your back and you're gonna end up as someone's new plaything before the first day is even over!"  
  
Boba ducked his head, staring at the floor as Bossk's words ran on repeat through his mind. A traitorous part of him agreed with Bossk. Though his stubborn side insisted he'd last more than a day, he had to relent as reality encased him once more.  
  
"You're right," Boba mumbled, shoulders slouching in defeat. "I wouldn't last a day." He bit the inside of his cheek, hating how he sounded like a scolded child. The sting in his cheek distracted him only so much from the weakness he felt. “I’m not...not strong enough on my own. Not yet.”  
  
At least the kid had _some_ humility.  
  
Bossk felt his impatience fade away, replaced by that pitying paternal instinct. Damn his instincts for making him go soft at the mere frown of a child. He was a feared bounty hunter, and he’d rather die than his reputation be smeared by the image of him as a “doting” father.  
  
Still, the dejection on Boba’s young face pulled at his heart strings, not that he’d ever _admit_ that.  
  
"You'd last more than a day," Bossk remarked, pointed teeth exposing in an amused grin when Boba snapped his head up.  
  
"Really?" Boba asked, brown eyes widening a little as he angled an eyebrow curiously. "But I thought-? Why do you say that?"  
  
Bossk shrugged, crossing his arms over his chest. "You _are_ kind of a brat."  
  
A grin broke out on Boba’s face as he scoffed, the smile betraying his amusement. “I _am_ gonna be a bounty hunter one day. Did you expect me to be ‘nice’?”  
  
“Not for a second!” Bossk laughed, the sound a quiet hissing noise. But when Boba’s expression turned serious, he stopped. "What is it?"  
  
Boba swallowed hard, glancing down at the floor. His arms folded over his chest, fingers digging into his biceps as he stared down at his shoes. “Um, I-I don’t know how t-to say it-” With a tight feeling in his chest, he met the trandoshan's gaze again. "-but thanks, Bossk. F-For looking out for me, I mean."  
  
Bossk tensed, thrown off-guard by the genuine confession. Few people trusted him enough to let their guard down, even for a moment. He recovered from the shock, and placed a hand on Boba’s shoulder. "Someone has to."  
  
“Are you doing it out of respect for my dad?” Boba asked, head tilting the slightest bit.  
  
A child vengeful enough to seek the death of his father’s killer _shouldn’t_ look so damn cute. But Bossk still felt his lips curl into a smile, one of the very rare genuine ones.  
  
“A little, but it’s mostly because I like you, kid,” Bossk replied, reaching a hand up and ruffling the boy’s hair again. "You're alright!"  
  
Without warning, Boba rushed forward. His arms clasped around Bossk’s waist, hands not quite meeting in the middle of his back. His head rested below the trandoshan’s rib cage, cheek squished against his stomach.  
  
"Thanks," Boba mumbled, refusing to look up in case he was met with a disapproving expression. Right now, he needed some form of reassurance. He knew that if he looked up and was met with rejection, he’d break. “Just...thanks.”  
  
Bossk froze, shock making his body go taute. He couldn’t remember the last time someone hugged him, outside of visits to his home world and seeing his clan.  
  
When he recovered a second later, his hands hovered above the boy’s shoulders before settling on them. His shoulders were dwarfed by the trandoshan’s giant hands, a reminder of just how _young_ Boba still was.  
  
The paternal instinct in Bossk became even harder to ignore. He allowed himself a brief indulgence, one hand cupping the back of Boba’s head while the other rested on his upper back.  
  
Boba’s eyes snapped open, surprised to the hug was actually returned. His fingers tightened in the fabric of Bossk’s prison suit, clinging to the moment of comfort while he could.  
  
It was over a second later. The trandoshan cleared his throat, gently freeing himself from Boba's grasp. The boy reluctantly let go, missing the comforting contact the second it was gone.  
  
"Don't get soft on me now," Bossk teased, letting his hands drop. “You’re gonna be a bounty hunter one day, remember?”  
  
Boba nodded, dropping his chin with a halfhearted, “Right…”  
  
Bossk sighed, his smile faltering. “Get some sleep, kid. It’s been a long day.”  
  
On cue, the guards shut the lights out and every cell went dark for the night.  
  
“Right,” Boba repeated, shoulders slouching as he crawled onto the lower bunk. He laid on his side - facing away from Bossk - and curled up. The poor boy didn’t even bother to pull the blanket over himself.  
  
So Bossk did it for him, pulling the thin, government-issue blanket up to Boba’s shoulders.  
  
As he pulled away, his keen hearing picked up the quietest, “Thanks”.  
  
A faint smile found its way onto Bossk’s face as he climbed into the upper bunk.  
  
As a bounty hunter, he tried to avoid attachments. But Boba was different. This poor kid’s gone through so much, yet doesn’t let it keep him down. He’s got the ferocity of a trandoshan at heart, and Bossk knows he’ll be a great bounty hunter one day. Maybe even one of the best?  
  
And as Bossk laid there, waiting for sleep to overtake him, he promised himself he’d do whatever he could to keep that kid safe. He’d protect him until he could stand on his own two feet like a proper bounty hunter.

**Author's Note:**

> I have a twitter if you wanna go follow me there! :)  
> Twitter: https://twitter.com/EclecticWrites   
> My handle is @EclecticWrites.


End file.
